Top 10 Times Gordon Ramsay Almost FOUGHT a Contestant

“Oceana”
If you know anything about Gordon Ramsay, you know that he’s a world renowned chef, and that he has one hell of a temper! On “Kitchen Nightmares,” Ramsay is called in to get struggling restaurants out of the hole. Most episodes feature stubborn owners, but this brother duo brings the aggression. Moe and Rami encourage a volatile workplace that allows sub-par food standards and unsanitary practices. When Gordon confronts the crew about serving frozen food, head chef Damon becomes irate and gets in his face. Thankfully the situation was deescalated, but later in the episode we see the brothers screaming and breaking things in their own dining room. This episode was eventually removed from the air because of a defamation lawsuit filed by Oceana’s owners.

“6 Chefs Compete”
Over the years, Gordon has had some pretty creative insults for chefs who don’t meet his standards. Unfortunately, season five contestant Giovanni was not immune to the wrath of Ramsay. After being berated for countless mistakes, the contestant decides being called “dickface” is the final straw. He immediately claps back and lets the whole kitchen know he may have made mistakes but he doesn’t deserve the expletive. However, this only seems to anger Gordon even more as the two wind up nose-to-nose in a screaming match. After being followed around the kitchen, Giovanni finally starts to understand that, in his own sadistic way, Ramsay is only trying to push the team to be better.

“Piccolo Teatro”
Paris is home to some of the finest cuisine, right? Well this Parisian restaurant had some insoluble issues. Ramsay soon discovers that the problem with this vegetarian joint lies with the staff. Aside from poor management and bad food, one of the restaurant’s biggest hurdles is head chef Daniel, who Ramsay aptly names “the Brazilian nut.” What starts off as odd and inappropriate behavior turns to something much more dangerous when Daniel is asked to leave the kitchen. While arguing with the owner, he brandishes some cutlery and begins waving them around. Gordon calmly grabs the chef’s arm and pleads with him to drop the knife. Once he finally steps outside, Gordon throws the man over his shoulder and takes him off the premises.

“6 Chefs Compete”
There’s something about the black jackets that seems to make competing chefs crack. As the pressure mounts and dishes continue to come back, Ramsay ramps up his call-outs. After claiming Scott has stopped caring, the exasperated chef shouts back. Although he may have just been trying to defend his stake in this competition, it’s always wiser to just take the beating and bounce back. While his teammates look on with fear in their eyes, Gordon lets Scott know that he will not tolerate any more talk back. Actually - he says he’ll drag him out of the kitchen, himself. Once you get past the brutish nature of Ramsay’s outbursts, it’s clear that he’s only trying to make these contestants better.

“14 Chefs Compete”
Chef Ramsay holds his restaurants to the highest standards - from his staff, to his recipes, to the quality of food. With the finest products at his disposal, it makes sense that he would like to minimize waste. When one competitor is tasked with prepping filet, we learn that he has never actually cleaned a cut before. After butchering one of the most expensive cuts of beef, Seth tries to hide the scraps. Unfortunately, Gordon is always watching and pulls the pan to show the rest of the kitchen. Seth is berated for not only never properly handling tenderloin as a supposed chef, but also for wasting product. But, since it’s now unservable, Gordon finds another use for the scraps - an outlet for his anger.

“16 Chefs Compete”
By now, we know that talking back is a major “no no” in “Hell’s Kitchen”…but what about mimicking Chef Ramsay? Season 8’s Boris was off to a terrible start when he overheard someone from the red team getting chewed out for raw food. Foolishly, he parroted Ramsay’s infamous “it’s raw!” Unfortunately for Boris, Gordon did not find it as funny as he originally thought. With his tail between his legs, he’s called into the red kitchen and dared to do it again. From the look on Boris’ face, he immediately knew he messed up. We’re sweating just rewatching this standoff.

“Amy’s Baking Company”
Over the years, Ramsay has been called to some pretty vile and outdated places - but one Arizona restaurant was hiding something much more concerning behind its shiny kitchen counters. Owners Amy and Samy will go down in history as the first to make Gordon turn his back on them. From bad food to nearly fighting customers - there are many issues with this place. Gordon gets into it with Samy after learning that he takes his waitresses’ tips. Samy starts yelling, and even threatens Gordon. The next day when he tries to sit them down and calmly address what needs to be fixed, the couple attack him, once again, forcing him to walk away.

“1.7”
We know what you’re thinking - “how has no one ever tried to fight him before?” Well, this contestant was brought to her boiling point. UK’s Amanda Barrie was anything but mousey on her season of Hell’s Kitchen. After several demanding services, it’s pretty clear that she can’t handle the heat from the kitchen. Gordon tries to speak to her one-on-one, but she’s not in the mood. It’s when Gordon accuses Amanda of shouting to show off that she swipes at him! Ramsay’s cat-like reflexes lead us to believe this has happened before. Even after evading a slap, he remains calm and collected trying to deescalate the situation. She makes a few more failed attempts before the other chefs step in to calm her down.

“Mill Street Bistro Part 1 & 2”
It’s not an easy job to turn around a failing restaurant - especially if the owner is delusional. The Mill Street Bistro almost seemed like the perfect set-up for a successful farm-to-table bistro. However, once Gordon tasted the food, it was clear that this place had let standards slip. From outlandish concepts to less-than-fresh food, the Bistro is in dire need of help. Unfortunately, owner Joe doesn’t agree. Ramsay can’t accept his boastful attitude and lack of basic culinary knowledge. Things get heated when Joe can’t lead his team without second guessing everything. Gordon tells him to man up and run his brigade, but Joe becomes defensive and gets in his face. Before things got worse, Ramsay kicked him out to show him how it’s done.

“15 Chefs Compete”
What do you get when you put two hot-heads in “Hell’s Kitchen?” Season 6 competitor Joseph lives in infamy for his intense exit. The blue team were tasked with delivering two nominees for elimination and the reasons why - simple enough, right? Instead, Joseph dances around the instructions, which made Ramsay infuriated. After several smart responses, the two become increasingly aggressive, and other contestants try to steer their teammate in the right direction. Unfortunately, Joseph reaches the point of no return when he steps off the podium and into Ramsay’s face. He asks the accomplished chef to take it outside, but once again, Ramsay is unwavering. Thankfully, security intervened, and Joseph left “Hell’s Kitchen” - or stumbled out, rather. Don’t forget to watch the step!